Three Things Portland Has Lost Since 1972, As Chronicled By Planning Papers

NO. 1: THE COURAGE TO CHALLENGE THE STATUS QUO
From the "transportation" section of the April 1, 2008, city planning document with the monstrous title, "Portland Plan: Conditions, Trends & Issues: Central Portland Plan Assessment: DRAFT: For Public Review":

"…not all transportation planning goals have been met, or even appear to be achievable now, decades later. For example, one goal of the [1972] Downtown Plan was a mass transit system that would carry 75% of the passenger trips to and through the downtown core, and provide a viable alternative to the private vehicle—i.e., a fast, inexpensive, convenient and comfortable system. The 75% "mode split" seems unrealistic (instead, the automobile captures nearly that share, with transit closer to 15%)."

Well, so much for that idea. After all, why should we expect so many people to use mass transit, with $200 oil on the way?

NO. 2: BREVITYBack then, they just called it the "1972 Downtown Plan."

NO. 3: SNAZZY ILLUSTRATIONSCheck these out! (From the '72 plan.)
They're much warmer and more compelling than this flat, Adobe-spawned disaster, no?

As long as we're on the subject, this came in over the transom today...a schedule of upcoming public meetings—er, "listening points"—for the upcoming Portland Plan revamp, in case you feel like bitching to city officials about points No. 1, 2 or 3, or sharing your hope and heartache at visionPDX, the sequel.
Follow this link for background on the Portland Plan update. Here's the schedule of May meetings: